"Don't come out from under unless you hear my voice. Understand?" Karen's eyes were full of tears but she nodded and slid beneath the Gremlin. I'd purchased it from some guy who'd been using it as a dune buggy, so the tires were oversized. She'd never have made it under the car if they hadn't been. I ran in the opposite direction, waving my arms to catch the attention of the alien piloting the saucer. It worked all too well. I ran faster than I'd ever run. Bodies were scattered throughout the park, some of them with arms and legs cut off by the beam. I turned back to check on the saucer's location, because the machines were deadly silent. When I did I tripped over something and went sprawling. Scrambling to my feet, I saw that it was a young girl, perhaps eleven or twelve. Long brown hair, and a pretty face. She'd been cut in half by the beam. Her legs and hips, and the singed waist of her pretty Easter dress, lay about five yards behind her upper torso. I was about to run when big, beautiful but terrified eyes suddenly opened and shocked me. She looked up at me. "Help me," she begged softly. Fear of remaining with her to die was overwhelming, but I discovered my humanity was stronger. I took her hand in mine and squeezed it. Somehow I managed a smile, watching in apprehension as the saucer circled for another pass. "It's going to be okay, sweetheart," I lied. "My name's Tom, and I'm right here. I won't leave you." I felt a slight pressure against my grip. "Ginny," she whispered. Then her grip loosened, and her eyes closed forever. The saucer was too close. I'd never escape it. I resigned myself to dying, proud that at least when I'd been tested, I'd chosen compassion over fear. As it swooped toward me, my last thoughts were of Karen. I took a deep breath and stood; I wanted to meet death with eyes wide open, in one last act of human defiance. -- (Saturday's Children)"